A Different Bride
by BigBadWolfTardis
Summary: What if it wasn't Donna Noble that was pulled inside the Tardis after Doomsday? What if it was a different bride, one that was carrying an alien egg inside her? When Gwen Cooper meets the Doctor, she begins travelling the stars with him. But with Harold Saxon waiting in the shadows, can Gwen and the Doctor survive the Valiant? A Doctor Who/Torchwood Crossover, focusing on season 3.
1. The Pregnant Bride

**Hello, here goes another one : ) And, this is my very first crossover too, or at least, the first offical one : ) So this is an idea that's been going around my head for ****_ages_****, and I've finally decided to start it. It is in NO relation to my other Doctor Who stories. Craig Tyler does not exist in this universe. What happens here had no bearing on that universe either. **

**Right, so explanations of the time lines. This is set right away the Doctor said goodbye to Rose on Bad Wolf Bay in 'Doomsday', and Gwen has come from 'Something Borrowed' in Torchwood season two. In this though, 'Something Borrowed' would have taken place before the end of season one, when Jack finds the Doctor again, so for the sake of this story please just imagine it did happen before the end of series one and that Rhys also found out before that point. And I think that's it. Please note that Doctor Who and Torchwood are not mine, and I hope you enjoy : ) **

**...**

**The Pregnant Bride**

In a large circular room which was held up with coral like beams and a great glass cylinder in the centre, connected to a large console filled with unimaginable devices, a man stood staring into space, tears rolling silently down his cheeks, his eyes… heartbroken.

This man was the Doctor, not a Doctor, THE Doctor. He was an alien, a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey, and the strange room bathed in green light was the control room of his wonderful ship called the Tardis. It stood for Time And Relative Dimensions In Space. From the outside, it looked like a small police box, on the inside, it was massive, filled with wonder and if he believed in it, magic.

The Doctor also looked what you'd call 'ordinary'. He was gorgeous really, with a skinny but not weak build, dressed in a sharp brown pinstripe suit which displayed his figure nicely, and his hair was a wild mess but it was really, really great hair. His face was normally lit up in excitement, only now it wasn't. It was the face of a crushed man.

The Doctor had just lost the woman he loved. Rose Tyler had been lost to another world, a parallel world where he would never see her again. But she was safe, she was… well maybe not happy but at the very least coping. Now he was alone, and he just felt so… empty.

He just let his tears fall for a moment longer over Rose; she really had meant every single world out there to him, without her… life felt so pointless. But he had to go on; he was the last Time Lord in existence. Without him… there would be no one left to save the universe when it needed saving.

As he wiped away his tears, he felt a tiny blow of air, followed by a small gasp of shock. Spinning around, the Time Lord's mouth dropped open. There, standing there bold as brass in his Tardis, where she must certainly had NOT been a moment ago was a young woman, a bride in fact, and she was staring at him with just as much shock as he was at her.

The bride herself was very beautiful, in every sense of the word. She had sleek black hair, tied up into a bun on her head with ringlets rolling down to her shoulders in curls, slightly hidden in her veil. Her lips were full and as red as … he winced slightly… a rose. Her eyes were so hazel they seemed to shimmer gold, and looking her up and down, the Doctor noticed that although her figure was nicely curved and slender in her white wedding dress, she also happened to be heavily pregnant, nearly full term by his reckoning. There was something very familiar about her too… he felt like he had met her before but he couldn't be sure.

'What?!' the Doctor cried aghast. Where the bloody _hell_ had she come from?!

'What?!' the bride cried in a thick welsh accent, staring at him with wide eyes.

'But… How?' the Doctor asked, even more confused.

'Who are you? I'm warning you mate I'm a police officer and I carry a gun' she glared angrily at him.

'But…' the Doctor just looked at her, beyond confused and closer to just plain old dumbfounded.

'Where the hell you have brought me and how the hell did you do it?!' the bride demanded, yelling loudly at him, her welsh vowels echoing around the room.

'WHAT?!' the Doctor shouted in worse shock than ever. What the hell was going on here?!

'You can't do that, I wasn't… we're in flight! That is… that is physically impossible! How did…?' the Doctor cried, looking around for an explanation.

'Tell me where I am. I'm warning you mate; you've picked the wrong girl to kidnap today. I am a police officer; I've met men who abduct women before. If you let me go now, unharmed, I won't say a single word about this. You get off free. If you hurt me, people will come looking' the bride warned in a calming reassuring voice, like she expected him to suddenly run at her with a knife or something.

'I'm not going to harm you, I swear it. I didn't kidnap you, I really didn't… how the hell did you get here?!' the Doctor ended up asking again.

'If you didn't bring me here… no, strike that. First of all… where is here?' the woman asked confusedly, looking around at the strange controls in the centre of the room, the weird beams holding up the roof, the metal grated floor. It was like nothing she had ever seen before.

'You're inside the TARDIS' the Doctor supplied after a few moments of silence. He just didn't get any of this.

'The what?' she asked him to repeat softly.

'The TARDIS' he whispered.

'The what?' she ordered to know again.

'The TARDIS!' he nearly yelled, spinning around to the controls.

'Listen you, I've tried been calm but my patience is wearing thin! So you tell me right now where I am or I'll show you just how serious I'm being!' she was suddenly shouting. Clearly she thought he was playing some sick mind game with her. But then he supposed, she thought that he'd kidnapped her, so it was to be expected, even though he hadn't!

'This place, it's called the TARDIS. Time And Relative Dimensions In Space' he finally explained.

'And what is that meant to mean? That's not even a real word!' she cried in annoyance. She was starting to get angry and the Doctor knew that, but right now so was he. He wanted answers and he was determined to get them.

'How did you get in here?' he demanded.

'Well, obviously, when you kidnapped me. Why have you done this? What do you want from me? Cause let me tell you mate, I'm nobody's victim and if you so much as place a hand on me I'll…' the bride started but the Doctor swiftly cut her off.

'I've already said I'm not going to hurt you! God, do I look like a kidnapping, murdering rapist to you?!' he cried indignantly.

'I've seen monsters in all shapes and sizes, and I mean that literally too' the bride replied coolly.

'Oh thank you very much. Now tell me, how do you get in here?' the Doctor demanded of her, but the bride wasn't looking at him now, for she had spotted a lilac top hanging from one of the rails. Suddenly she had it in her hand and was holding it in the Doctor's face.

'Just like I said, monsters! Look at this, here's the proof, how many innocent women have you abducted, what happened to them? Did you torture them? Rape them? Did you kill them all? A… are you going to kill me?' she suddenly asked weakly. The Doctor looked into her eyes, truly started now.

'Of course I'm not! For your information, that top belongs to a friend of mine… but she's gone now' he turned away mournfully. The woman looked at him in concern at the devastated look on his face.

'Who was she?' the bride asked in a gentle voice.

'Oh… she was…' he trailed off. Saying her name so soon just… hurt so much!

The bride looked torn between patting his arm comfortingly and keeping her distance from the man. Suddenly she noticed the white doors and glancing at the Doctor, whose attention was still so far away, she took her chances and dashed for the doors.

At the sound of her running footsteps, the Doctor looked up to see her heading for the doors. But they were still in space, orbiting a supernova. If she stepped outside, she'd fall out into the vacuum!

'No, wait a minute! Wait a minute! Don't!' he called after her. But it was too late. The bride had thrown the doors wide open and could see the exploding supernova beyond them. Her eyes widened and she took a step back, a gobsmacked look on her face.

The Doctor sighed as he slowly walked down the ramp towards the bride, standing beside her and looking out at the beautiful lightshow displayed before them.

'You're in space. Outer Space. This is my… space-ship. It's called the 'TARDIS'' the Doctor quietly and calmly explained.

'Oh my god!' she breathed quietly, trying to take in the specular sight before her.

'That is so… so beautiful' she whispered, sounding mystified.

'You think so?' the Doctor smiled at her. Suddenly she turned and looked up at him with wide curious eyes.

'Who are you?' she asked quietly, barely above a whisper.

'I'm the Doctor' he replied.

'Doctor who?' she asked curiously.

'Just the Doctor' he smiled at her.

'What, people just call you 'the Doctor'' she asked sarcastically.

'Well… most people just skip the 'the' bit' he grinned cheeky, and the bride rolled her eyes, slightly amused.

'That's not a name, that a psychological condition' she chuckled and the Doctor let out a low laugh.

'Anyway, who are you then?' the Doctor asked in turn.

'Gwen Cooper' she named herself, and it suddenly clicked in the Doctor's mind where he had seen her before.

'Sorry… just, hang on… you're welsh right?' he asked.

'Got a problem with that?' she asked challengingly, offended on behalf of the welsh population.

'No! Just… I met someone once who looked and sounded exactly like you. Eerily like you in fact. She even had a similar name, Gwyneth they called her. You live in Cardiff?' he asked and she nodded in confirmation.

'I suppose when she sealed the Rift it must have left an impression of her on it, causing an echo of her to appear in you' the Doctor said thoughtfully. Gwen frowned up at him.

'Hold on you know about the Rift?' she asked slightly started.

'_You_ know about it? How?' he demanded. This could be important. It could explain how she had appeared inside the Tardis in the first place.

'It's my job to keep it closed, monitor and deal with the stuff that comes through it' she answered with narrowed eyes. She didn't like this. How did this man know about the rift and the danger it posed? He was alien; she was sure of that, considering how he had a spaceship. Was he a threat to the Earth? Had he kidnapped her to use as a hostage against her team?

'Oh come on! The police are nowhere near capable of dealing with a rift running through space and time! UNIT would barely by enough' the Doctor protested.

'Well… when I say police officer, it's more ex-police officer. I'm more of a liaison officer at a government agency' she admitted.

'Right… well maybe that explains things!' the Doctor said briskly, closing the doors quickly and dashing back up to the console. Gwen slowly followed him, groaning slightly, placing her hand on her baby bump.

'Are you alright, why don't you sit down?' he offered kindly. After all, the stress of all this wouldn't be healthy for her baby.

'Oh give over! It's not even a human baby!' she said in annoyance. At this the Doctor wheeled around, looking at her questioningly, silently demanding she explain.

'I got bit last night by an alien. He implanted an egg in me and I _was_ going to have it removed later, obviously that plan's now gone out the window' she said annoyed. She frowned when the Doctor took a metal sort of tube from his jacket pocket and pointed it at her, flinching slightly in case it was some alien weapon.

'What is that thing?' she asked nervously, but she needn't have been. All it did was buzz at her before he looked closely at it, frowning slightly.

'A sonic screwdriver' he replied without looking at her.

'Oh of course' Gwen muttered sarcastically.

'Oh that is not good, that is very bad indeed. You've got a Nostrovite Egg inside you' he looked troubled now.

'Our doctor said it wouldn't harm me' Gwen said, slightly afraid now.

'Well, the egg itself won't, but when its mother finds you there'll be a bloodbath' the Doctor said grimly.

'God, can this day get any worse?' Gwen exclaimed, looking pale.

'Hold on though, if you knew about this egg, and you were going to get rid of it… what are you dressed like that for?' the Doctor looked at her in bewilderment.

'Oh I was on my way trick-or-treating and the Nostrovite gave me a quick love bite, what you think I was doing, stupid! I was about two seconds away from being married!' she shouted.

'With an alien egg in you?!' the Doctor gapped at her in shock for her guts.

'Shut it you! I'm going to get married today no matter what!' she glared at him

'Oh I see, your bloke thought 'hum, she's pregnant, let's get her up the aisle quick' did he?' the Doctor smirked. Gwen's jaw dropped and she took an angrily step towards him before slapping him around the face, looking outraged. The Doctor reeled back in shock. He had only been joking!

'No he bleeding didn't! We're getting married because we love each other!' she all but shrieked, before a horrified expression came over her face.

'Oh my god! I need to get back to my wedding!' she cried as she remembered. The Doctor took that as his cue and was instantly stood waiting at the controls. He was still clutching his cheek. This Gwen had one hell of an arm on her! But he supposed he deserve it for what his comment had been. He had only being trying to lighten the mood though.

'Where is it? I'll take you there' he quickly said. Once Gwen was back where she was meant to be, then he'd be able to focus on properly grieving Rose, despite that being the very last thing he had ever wanted to do.

…

Gwen took a step outside before she rounded on the Doctor.

'This isn't the church, where the hell are we?' she demanded. They had landed on a street corner, just out of sight of people running around their business, but Gwen knew it wasn't Cardiff. She had no idea where this was.

'Err, promise not to slap me?' the Doctor pleaded weakly from inside the Tardis. Gwen turned around, about to tell him she'd make so such promise, and her mouth dropped open in shock. The spaceship… no, 'the Tardis' she mentally corrected herself, was in reality a big, blue box. But not only that, in comparison to the inside, it was tiny!

'What… the hell?' she stammered out as she walked around the box, checking the back. She pressed her shoulder against the back panel. No, it was definitely real and curiously enough made of wood.

'It's a spaceship… and it's made of wood?' Gwen took a step inside and called over to the Doctor, who was at the controls, anxiously waiting for Gwen to finish so he could tell her the bad news.

'Err… yeah' the Doctor said, rubbing the back of his head. He was _really_ dreading her reaction to the news he had.

'And it's bigger on the inside?' she asked to confirm, just to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her.

'Yeah, I suppose it is, yeah' the Doctor replied, his nervousness growing. Gwen's eyes narrowed as she noticed his nervous demeanour.

'What is it?' she asked quietly, sensing it wasn't going to be good.

'Well, you know how you're getting married in Cardiff' the Doctor said slowly.

'I am aware of that fact; yes' Gwen nodded dryly, her voice mockingly serious.

'Well… it seems as though the Tardis has decided to take us to London instead' he said quickly before ducking as Gwen tried to slap him again.

'London?! London?! I'm supposed to be getting married _now_! It'll take me _hours_ to get to Cardiff!' she all but shrieked at him. She suddenly winced and groaned in pain before hutching over, her hands clutching her stomach where the egg was still inside her.

'Listen Gwen, that egg, I can get rid of it if you want' the Doctor offered softly, placing a hand on her shoulder. He hated seeing humans in pain.

'No thanks mate, you can't even get us to Cardiff properly' Gwen glared at him. The Doctor winced. Somethings never changed and it seemed as though his driving skills was one of them.

'I could try again?' he offered, and reluctantly, Gwen stepped back into the Tardis. The Doctor closed the door behind her and was soon dashing about the control, trying to pilot them away.

'Ouch!' he cried, sucking his fingers when the console sparked at him. He glared up at the time rotor.

'What was that for?' he whined. The Tardis gave him an angry hum in response. Gwen's mouth fell open.

'Did… did your ship just reply to you?!' she asked in alarm.

'Err, yeah. You see, she's not just a ship, but a living being. Welcome to the last Tardis in the universe' he looked over at her before trying to touch the controls again. He jumped back as another small shock ran through his fingers.

'Ow… err, it looks like she doesn't want to take us anywhere, like she doesn't want you to go… oh, oh girl you didn't… there was no need to do that for me!' the Doctor cried suddenly, realisation hitting him as he felt an affirmative hum in his mind, the Tardis confirming that she didn't want Gwen to leave.

'What, what did she do?' Gwen couldn't help but ask curiously. The Doctor looked at her excitedly, glad to have finally understood.

'You work at a rift in time, right on top of it, every day. This ship is capable of travelling through time. She can easily connect herself to rifts, and because I just lost my friend and the Tardis didn't want me to be alone, she was able to connect to the Cardiff rift and pull someone through it to be my friend, and that happens to be you' the Doctor explained.

'What, so you're lonely and your ship doesn't want you to be. So she took the _liberty_ of just picking me at random out of my life, my _wedding day_, just for you. Who the _hell_ does she think she is?!' Gwen demanded, fury dripping from every word.

The Doctor nodded in agreement, before rounding on the console.

'She's right girl, it's not your place to just do things like that. Gwen's got her own life; it's not her place to fill the void R… _she_ left' he choked on the name of his last companion.

'Is that it? That's all you're going to say? Tell her to send me back right now!' Gwen demanded. How dare some cheeky ship just decide to pull her across space? She felt sympathy for the Doctor, it was terrible for the guy to have lost someone he clearly cared about, but that wasn't her fault, and she had her own troubles to deal with!

The Tardis hummed angrily again, before suddenly the lights went out and the glow from the Time Rotor dulled. The Doctor tried a few controls, but nothing happened.

'Err, now she's shut herself down so you can't leave. God she really wants you to stay here' the Doctor frowned thoughtfully. He just didn't understand it. He could understand why the Tardis would do that, it was for him, her pilot, but to try and forcefully keep somebody there, that was new. She'd never acted like that before.

'Fine, I'll make my own way there' Gwen huffed before she turned, heading towards the open door. Except one moment later, the door slammed shut and locked itself. Gwen pushed and pushed against it, but it refused to budge.

'Oh what is it now?' she fumed. The Doctor slowly walked over to her.

'She's locked us in, why are you doing this girl?' he called over to the controls. The Tardis just hummed angrily again, a crackle of static flashing over the powerless console.

'Seems to me like she's having a hissy fit because she's not getting her own way' Gwen glared at the console before turning to the Doctor.

'What now? She's your ship, order her to let me out!' she demanded.

'Come on girl; let Gwen out so she can go get married! I'm fine. I really don't need her!' the Doctor tried but it was no use. Suddenly the Tardis rocked from side to side, and both Gwen and the Doctor were forced to hang onto some of the coral struts to avoid being knocked off their feet as the Tardis began dematerialising somewhere else.

When the shaking stopped, the door swung open by herself. Gwen grinned before dashing outside, only for her face to fall further. The Doctor stepped out too and laughed loudly. It seemed as though to make sure Gwen didn't get to her wedding in time, The Tardis transported her further away from Cardiff. And judging by the large stone statue of a woman, 'The Angel of the North' to be specific, with was located in the North East of England, it would take her days to get back home.

'Oh… sorry about her' the Doctor couldn't help but chuckle. Gwen rounded on him, looking highly pissed off.

'It's not funny!' she all but shrieked at him. And before he could reply, she began storming away from him.

'Oi, where are you going?' he called after her. She didn't look back as she stormed down the side of the busy motorway, attracting several funny looks from the drivers as she went.

'To find a train station and get back home!' she bellowed back. The Doctor shook his head in amusement, before he turned back into the Tardis and closed the door. Satisfied that Gwen would be able to find her own way back, he wanted to go set off on another adventure of his own.

He frowned though as he reached the console. It was still powered down. He sighed and glared at the time rotor.

'Look, she's gone, so get over it. And I decide who my friends are thank you. I don't need you just plucking random women out of their lives and making me look like some kind of kidnapping murder-rapist, thank you very much' he scolded her. The Tardis just hummed again, sounding even angrier then ever, before the monitor crackled and flickered into life.

And on it was the of image of Gwen, stomping through a shop-centre not far from them, before suddenly a creature, disguised as a woman in black, lunged at her and ripped her apart with her bare fangs, whilst Gwen screamed in agony as she was shredded limp from limp, drenched in blood and her own internal tissue and organs. The Doctor's eyes widened.

'What… what was that?! Is that… Gwen's futures?!' he asked in horrified alarm. The Tardis gave an affirmative hum in response. Panic shot through him. It had to be the Nostrovite that would be after her. He had to stop her!

'GWEN!' he yelled as he sprinted out of the Tardis after the pregnant bride, hoping he'd make it in time to stop any more deaths that day.

…

Gwen was absolutely furious by the time she reached anywhere. What had she done to deserve any of this?! A bloody alien bites her, infects her with an alien egg, and as if that wasn't bad enough, some bloody space-time ship just ripped her from her planet to keep some random guy company, how bloody dare she?!

And now she was attracting many funny looks as she stomped through a crowded shopping centre, in her wedding dress, _pregnant_, the bottom of her gown stained with mud and grass and a pissed off expression on her face. This whole bloody day was nothing more than a pile of crap! It was so unfair; all she'd wanted was _one_ day!

Suddenly she heard running footsteps behind her, and turning, her eyes widened as an attractive woman with brownish blonde hair, frenzied red eyes and dirty clawed fingers, dressed in a tight black dress and leather boots was sprinting at her, roaring like a wild out-of-control animal.

Her felt fear shot through her. She looked like that creature from the night before, the one that had bit her. She was a Nostrovite, the mother of the egg inside her! And the Doctor had said it would be a bloodbath when she found her!

'Oh shit!' Gwen cried as she turned and ran as fast as she could, her train and veil billowing out behind her and the bride ran as fast as possible through the large shopping centre, pushing past people and sending shopping bags flying as she went.

'Oh sorry!' she called over her shoulder when she knocked a table over, loaded with 'Support Harold Saxon' badges and posters on it. She sent the plastic badges and the papers flying across the floor as she sprinted onwards. The campaigner looked at her angrily, and was about to tell Gwen to help her pick the badges up, when she spotted the alien chasing Gwen and let out a terrified shriek at the sight of the psychotic alien woman.

Gwen came to an escalator and rushed up it, the Nostrovite right behind her though. People were screaming and running as they spotted the obvious monster. Gwen just kept running, pregnant, in her wedding dress, through a shopping centre, just after being kidnapped by a sentient ship. This had to be the worse wedding day in the whole of history!

…

The Doctor looked around in panic as he entered the shopping centre. He had to find Gwen before the Nostrovite did, he just had too. Too many people had died recently after meeting with him, he wasn't going to lose anyone else, not today, he wouldn't allow it.

'GWEN!' he yelled out as he ran. Suddenly he heard screaming and his stomach dropped to his stomach. The Nostrovite was there! He sprinted in the direction of the screaming, rounding a corner, before he crashed into someone, an out of breath and shocked Gwen.

'Doctor!' she gasped in shock. Behind her came a loud snarl and they turned and spotted the woman running at them.

'Run!' the Doctor yelled, grabbing her hand. Gwen didn't need telling twice, and soon the two of them were sprinting away, the Nostrovite in hot pursuit.

They ran for as long as they could, and finally they managed to lose the psychotic alien chasing after Gwen. She hunched over and panted for breath as she tried to catch her breath.

'Are you alright?' the Doctor asked her. She looked up at him pointedly.

'I'm running around in a wedding dress, with what feels like a keg of lager stuck up my skirt, what do you think Doctor?' she asked, sarcasm dripping from her voice. The Doctor just rolled his eyes before grabbing her hand again.

'Come on!' he said as he pulled her away. He pulled her towards a small cleaning cupboard.

'Oh great, hiding in a cupboard, I like that!' she muttered sarcastically. The Doctor just pushed her inside and closed the door as he stepped in too. They were left standing in the dark, amongst buckets and mops and cleaning materials.

'So go on then. What do you really do? You're taking all this rather well' the Doctor asked almost casually as he pushed a mop against the door, and jamming it against the back wall so that the door wouldn't open.

'I catch aliens alright? So you aren't the first I've met and you won't be the last. Anyway, is now really the time for this?' she asked in annoyance.

'Maybe not' the Doctor shrugged.

'Alright, just tell me this. That thing was in Cardiff, and it's the same day right. So how the hell did she get here so quickly, and how the find did she find me anyway, I could have been in another country for all she knew' Gwen pointed out. The Doctor was impressed. Those were excellent questions and points and not a single word was wasted there. Clearly this Gwen Cooper was highly intelligent along with brave, gutsy, and well, dare he say rather beautiful.

'Well, that's part of a Nostrovite abilities. They are _extremely_ fast runners and are _highly_ durable. They can go for weeks without tiring, so running the length of a country in a day is short work for them. Plus they have got the _best_ noses in at least _four_ galaxies around their home world, not as good as mine, but good none the less. You could be on Mars and they'd still be able to smell you' the Doctor explained to her.

'Oh great, which means there's nowhere to hide from the bitch then?' Gwen asked in annoyance. The Doctor was able to tell her off for her choice of words but he didn't get the chance.

For at that moment, there was suddenly there came a banging on the door, and they both stiffened.

'I know you're in there. Come on out little human. Let me have my young and I swear I won't hurt you' the Nostrovite said in a sickening sweet mocking voice.

'Yeah?! And how will you get it out of her?!' the Doctor called through the door, which thankfully was staying shut despite the Nostrovite trying to force it open.

'I need my young, I need you to give it to me' the alien replied, not answering the question.

'Well tough because you're not getting it!' Gwen yelled at her. Suddenly, with a loud bang against the door, the wood of the mop splintered and cracked, and the mop snapped, allowing the door to be opened. Standing right in front of them, blocking their escape was the Nostrovite, looking at them with a triumphant smirk.

'Fuck' Gwen swore loudly.

'Don't swear' the Doctor told her off.

'You're a bad girl Gwen… and you know what bad girl's get?!' the Nostrovite snarled at her, raising her claws. Gwen reacted quickly by punching the alien in the face, causing her to stagger back. She then grabbed the Doctor's hand.

'Move it!' she screamed, pushing past the Nostrovite and then they were off running again.

'How do we stop her, we can't keep outrunning her' Gwen puffed as she ran, placing a hand on her bump to trying and lessen the pain it was causing her.

'We need to find an electrical shop and get inside. Once there I can build something to stop her' the Doctor shouted back as the Nostrovite snarled behind them, getting closer to them.

'Electricals are this way!' Gwen cried spotting a sign, pulling on his arm to lead him in the right direction. They rounded another corner and the Doctor and Gwen dove through a shop doorway, thankfully into a shop empty on any customers and bolted the door shut and locked. The Nostrovite appeared on the other side of it, and began hammering her fists on the door.

'What the hell are you two playing at?' a clerk shouted at them angrily. Gwen just growled at him, back-handing him around the face, knocking the man out cold. The Doctor just looked down at the man on the ground in shock.

'What did you do that for? There was no need to clobber him!' he cried in protest to the needless violence. Gwen rounded on him.

'Listen, either you get working on that machine of yours, or I'll knock you out too and remove something every man feels very attached too' she snarled at him.

'Hormones' the Doctor muttered under his breath.

'What?!' Gwen snapped.

'Nothing, I'm just… going to get to work' he muttered as he began running up and down the shelves, collecting the gadgets with the necessary parts, pulling down boxes and using his sonic screwdriver to break the machinery up into the things he needed. As he sat and worked, he called over to Gwen, who was beginning to moan in pain, clutching at her pregnancy bump.

'Gwen, go check that office. Is there another way out of it?' he asked, and grumbling, Gwen headed over to the doorway he was pointing at.

'Yeah, it looked like it leads into another shop' she called back as she looked through the doorway.

'Perfect! When I'm finished, I'll place this in that room. You go through into the other shop and lock the door behind you. I'll let her in and set this off to blow her up' the Doctor beamed as he attached another piece to the small square device he was creating, a small and contained bomb, capable of destroying her but not killing anyone else nearby.

'Ok… just, hurry up! Look, she's getting through!' Gwen cried in distress, and looking up, the Doctor could see the thick glass door starting to crack slightly. It wouldn't be long now.

'There!' the Doctor cried delightedly as he attached the final part. Now all he had to do was use the sonic from a distance and the bomb would detonate.

'Good, now come on!' Gwen cried as she rushed through the doorway. The Doctor sprinted after her, planting his homemade device beneath the two doorways before he heard Gwen lock the other door. He grinned before running back through the shop, though it fell slightly when he remember the poor young teenager Gwen had knocked out. Letting out a sigh, he hoisted the guy over his shoulder fire-man style before staggering towards the door.

He looked out and saw the Nostrovite glaring at him, before he undid the hatch, and without paying him any attention, the alien sprinted up the aisle, looking for Gwen. The Doctor smirked before he rushed through the doorway out of the shop, before he struggled over to where Gwen was coming out of her shop. This guy could really do with going on a diet.

'Wish you hadn't knocked him out now' the Doctor said through gritted teeth as the pulled the boy away.

'Oh shut up' Gwen huffed as she helped. They pulled him to a safe distance, before they stood straight and held each other's hand. They could still hear the Nostrovite yelling for Gwen to let her in, her pounding against the door in-between the two shops.

'I'm sorry' the Doctor said guilty and sorrowfully as he held up the sonic, pressing the button. In a ball of fire and blood, a shrieking echoing scream could be heard as both shops burst into flames. Glass and bits of concrete and dust were blasted everywhere, knocking Gwen and the Doctor to the ground, but neither of them were harmed.

'Oh my god, you did it! You did it!' Gwen cheered in delight. The Doctor laughed slightly. He felt bad about having to do that, of course he did, but he knew that she would never stop until she got what she wanted, and he couldn't let that happen to Gwen. He grinned. He had managed to avoid what the Tardis had shown him. He realised now that she hadn't just transported Gwen to him for his sake, but for Gwen's own sake too. Shaking, the two of them got to their feet, and holding hands, the Doctor lead Gwen away before anyone could find them.

…

The two of them had gone back to the Tardis, the Doctor ignoring Gwen's protests about entering the cheeky box as he led the way, pulling her with him. Once inside, he led her straight to the med-bay, gently pushing her onto one of the beds.

'What are you doing?' she asked stubbornly.

'I'm getting that egg out of you before it causes anymore trouble' the Doctor said just as stubbornly.

'And how are you going to do that? Give me a laxative?' she smirked teasingly. The Doctor chuckled and rolled his eyes fondly.

'No, I'm going to destroy it. The universe doesn't need any more Nostrovites on earth thank you' the Doctor replied as he pulled a strange alien device towards the bed. Gwen eyed it nervously. It was some kind of big laser beam, and the Doctor was positioning it so that it was pointing straight at her belly.

The Doctor then noticed her uneasiness.

'Don't worry, it's fine. It'll just blast that egg into atoms but it won't do anything to you' the Doctor gently explained, and nodding in understanding, Gwen lay back slightly. The Doctor pressed a few buttons on it, before a beam of bright blue light shot out of the end of the laser.

Gwen giggled as a tickling sensation passed through her body for a few seconds, before the Doctor turned the machine off. Looking down at herself, she was delighted to see her normal flat stomach again.

'Oh thank you so much' she cried cheerful, leaping up and hugging him tightly, for saving her life and ridding her of that egg parasite she'd picked up.

'Gwen Cooper, it was my pleasure. Now let's go see if the Tardis has calmed down enough to listen to reason' the Doctor said brightly, leading the way back to the control room.

…

But it seemed as though the Tardis was still having none of it. In fact, in response to the Doctor demanding she take them to Cardiff immediately, the Tardis landed, and looking out, Gwen groaned when she saw Loch Ness in Scotland.

'How long is she going to keep this up for?' Gwen asked tiredly as the Doctor stepped out to see where she had taken them too now. His eyes lit up in amusement before he responded.

'Well, that depends really on how long her mood last. I've got an idea if you want to hear it' he suggested, and turning to him Gwen nodded for him to tell her.

'Well, I usual travel the universe with a companion, friends, by my side. And the Tardis pulled you to her just after I lost my last one… so I think that she … well, wants you to be the next you' the Doctor said sheepishly. Gwen frowned at him.

'So your ship just decided to take me out of my life and send my travelling through the universe just so you wouldn't be alone? She must care a lot about you' Gwen noted. She was still annoyed by the ship's action, considering how long she had been gone for. There was no way she was getting married now, but at least it was for the right reasons.

'Yeah, yeah she does, yeah' the Doctor nodded.

'So what, I'm supposed to just give up my life, just like that' Gwen mused aloud. The very idea was ludicrous!

'Well, it might make the Tardis more willing to take you back home' the Doctor shrugged. If he was honest it was less about trying to make the Tardis co-operate and more about his desire for her not to leave so soon. It was nice having someone around, and with Rose gone, he needed someone more than ever.

'And how long would I have to stay for?' Gwen asked, considering it now. Everything she had done today, the Supernova, the running, the Doctor blowing the Nostrovite up, she had loved it! She knew it was bad really, but that was what her life had been like for months now, and she loved it so much.

It was just the thrill of the chase, even if she was the prey, the running, the danger, the sacrifices, the keeping it secret. She knew things nobody else did, and that made her feel so special. Like she was part of something bigger. And the Doctor was kind, clever, and basically represented everything she enjoyed from her job. So maybe travelling with him, just for a bit, wouldn't be so bad.

'Well, maybe a trip or two, then I think she'd let me take you home' the Doctor replied softly, secretly hoping she'd agree, just so he'd have someone to talk to for a while longer. Gwen paused and he could practically see the wheels in her brain turning.

'But my job… my fiancée, my team… I can't just abandon them without warning' she sighed. She wanted to go, just a tiny bit of her really did, but she knew she couldn't just disappear like that.

'If it helps, the Tardis can travel through time as well, we could go anywhere in time and space and I could bring you right back to today, in Cardiff, home safe and sound' he offered.

'Could you go back to this morning so I could get it right?' she asked hopefully but he shook his head.

'Your timeline has being established now I'm afraid, so no, I couldn't do that. But it would all be waiting here for you, your life, your bloke, your team. So, what d'ya say?' the Doctor asked hopefully. Gwen considered him for a moment longer, before grinning at him and nodding. The Doctor let out a small laugh as he hugged her, which she found herself happily returning.

'All right, I'll stay for a few trips okay, and then you take me back home, deal?' she grinned as she offered him her hand.

'Deal!' the Doctor shook her hand, beaming like a kid on Christmas.

'Oh god, but what I am going to wear?! I can't run around in my wedding dress for days!' Gwen suddenly noted aloud.

'Oh there's a massive wardrobe, full of all sizes and time eras. I'm sure you could find something you'd like' the Doctor quickly assured her and she beamed at him.

'It's down there, first left, second right, third on the left, go straight ahead, under the stairs, past the bins, it's the fifth door on your left, you can't miss it, go on then, enjoy yourself' the Doctor grinned at her, gesturing with his arms. Gwen grinned back before she rushed off, exploring the amazing corridors of the ship in the process.

…

Gwen looked at herself in wide fully length mirror. She had been amazed when she had finally walked into the immense wardrobe. It had everything a girl could wish for and more! Dresses, shirts, skirts, trousers, blouses, jewellery, make-up, shoes, hats, suits, jeans, coats, jackets, gowns, frocks, even swimsuits. And they came in every colour and every size! It made selecting an outfit very difficult indeed, so in the end she decided on something simple, yet it still felt like 'her'.

She was wearing a tight leather black jacket that highlighted her figure nicely, a red t-shirt, and dark jeans and simple white running shoes. It was the type of outfit she wore to work every day, so she was comfortably in its suitably for running.

She admired her reflection in the mirror as she let her curled hair loose, before pulling it into a ponytail. It was still in ringlets, but had an impressive quality to it. In fact, she looked like she'd just walked out of a fashion magazine if she did say so herself. Applying a subtle hint of dark eyeliner and red lipstick, the look was complete, and satisfied, Gwen left the amazing room she knew she'd soon love.

With a spring in her step and a grin on her face, Gwen quickly returned to the control room, finding the Doctor with his back to her.

'Ready' she said cheerfully, making him jump and turn around to her, a grin etched onto his face.

'So then, tell me Gwen Cooper… where'd you wanna go?' he asked as he beamed at her. Gwen grinned back as she took her first steps into a brand new amazing adventure, with the madman and his box as her only companions.

**...**

**And there's chapter one. I know it's not the best openning for story, but it was a bit difficult finding a way to introduce the two characters and this is the final result I manage to get it too. I always struggle with the beginnings but then the story gets better... strange that : / Anyway, I really hope you liked the beginning of this story, and I'll give a little explanation as to what will happen next : )**

**This story will mostly house the season 3 episode, but episodes from the other seasons will appear in this too. So if there is any episode you'd like to see Ten and Gwen (I love that rhyming name for them!) face together, please leave a suggestion in a review and I'll see what I can do : ) I won't be doing every episode though. I plan for this story to be roughly between 20 and 30 chapters long, so shorter in comparison to my other stories. **

**But I digress, so I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, and please leave a review to tell me what you think : )**


	2. The Shakespeare Code

**Hello! I am SO sorry about the long wait. I really am. Please don't kill me for taking so long : ) But hey, the usual excuses, work, stuff at home, illness, but that's enough about that : ) So, here's chapter two, hooray! I decided to go with The Shakespeare Code because I think as a first trip, it works really nicely, plus I love the episode too. So, Gwen and Ten again! Please remember that Doctor Who is not mine, and neither is Torchwood. I hope it's worth the wait : )**

**...**

**The Shakespeare Code**

Gwen grinned around the console at the Doctor as she held on tight to avoid falling to her knees. She couldn't believe she was doing this. It was mad, bonkers even… but, she couldn't help but feel a little excited too. She was going to see things nobody else could, she had been given that chance, and although she really did want to go home, she knew she was going to enjoy this whilst it lasted.

'So then, is this what you do? You just go… see things? Don't you get involved?' she asked him curiously. The Doctor turned and grinned at her.

'Well, the laws of my people state we're not to interfere, but I was never one to listen to rules' the Doctor beamed at her.

'Careful mate, I was a police officer you know' she waved a playful finger in his face, causing him to laugh.

'Please, I could easily escape one of your puny human prisons' he laughed and Gwen chuckled.

'With your sonic screwdriver?' she guessed and he nodded happily. It was so nice to have someone there again. Gwen wasn't a replacement for Rose; in fact she was anything but. Rose had wanted to stay forever, and Gwen wanted to leave in a few trips. Rose had loved him and he loved her, and Gwen had her own fellow so it was nice to know he wouldn't have to worry about her falling for him. That was the last thing he needed. But she was so like Rose too. Brave, caring, she could see it, the beauty of everything. Plus he could tell she knew which were good and bad topics. And right now, that was exactly what he needed.

'So where are we going anyway? How can you possibly decide?' Gwen asked him.

'With great difficulty. I've got everything to choose from. The whole of time and space' he beamed and Gwen grinned at him.

'It's no wonder you don't stay still' she said thoughtfully. The Doctor winced slightly. That remembered him so much of something Rose had once said.

'Better with two' he murmured to himself.

'What?' Gwen asked, having not caught that.

'Nothing' he brushed her off, just as the Tardis landed and nearly knocked them over.

'Oh, bit bumpy, did you pass the test for this thing?' Gwen asked cheekily.

'Of course I didn't!' the Doctor said as if the question was offensive. Gwen laughed as she headed for the door, the Doctor grinning at her enthusiasm as he followed her.

'Oh wow!' Gwen breathed as she stared around at their surroundings. She didn't even have to ask to know where they had gone. Stone and wooden cottages, mud paths and straws everywhere, people milling about in simply clothing, Elizabethan England! They had really done it, they'd travelled through time!

'Oh my god we really did it, we've gone back in time, that's just… brilliant!' she whooped. She attracted a few odd looks but she really didn't care. She'd gone back in time for god's sake!

Besides her, the Doctor laughed at her enthusiasm. This Gwen Cooper was brilliant; he could see it in her already.

'You work for an organisation which apparently tracks debris floating through a space/time rift, and this is impressive to you' he rolled his eyes fondly.

'Oi! I've never actually time travelled myself! This is all new to me!' she beamed at him.

'That's time travel for you, always something new' the Doctor nodded in agreement, casting an eye at their surroundings. It was night time, but the city was lit by firelight. It was gorgeous!

'So go on then, tell me, when and where are we?' Gwen asked him excitedly. They both looked up when they heard a man calling from above them, emptying the contents of a bucket from an upstairs window.

'Mind the loo!' he called. They both looked in disgust at the sewage he had dumped. Another few inches to the length, it would have landed right on top of them.

'Somewhere before the invention of the toilet. Sorry about that' the Doctor muttered.

'I've been on the beat, I've seen worse' Gwen shrugged it off as the Doctor began walking away.

'So hold on, are we… you know, able to walk around and stuff?' she asked as she jogged to catch him up.

'Of course we can. Why do you ask?' the Doctor asked her confusedly.

'Well, maybe it just the films but you've seen it, it like… I don't know, stepping on a butterfly and you end up changing the entire human race's future' Gwen tried to explain for concern. The Doctor began laughing.

'Gwen that's ridiculous, but to be on the safe side, let's avoid stepping on butterflies' he grinned at her.

'So if I killed my grandfather or something, would that be more… causal?' she struggled to find the right word. She was really trying hard to get her head around all this time travel stuff.

'Well yeah, but it should just snap back into place. I mean, if you killed your grandfather you wouldn't exist in the first place, and if you never existed you couldn't go back and kill him, thus it would cancel out you killing him and you and he'd be alive again, you see?' he rattled off at her. Gwen just gapped at him. She'd never met someone who could talk that much without drawing breath before.

She just silently followed him, before her original question came back to mind.

'So where are we?' she asked.

'London. I think' he replied thoughtfully.

'And when?' she grinned and he smiled back.

'Right about 1599' he beamed delightedly.

'Oh god, that's amazing! That means I won't be born for like another four hundred years!' she laughed loudly, attracting yet more funny looks. She really seemed to be getting them a lot lately.

'Well don't go telling them that!' the Doctor laughed along with her.

'How can you possibly get used to this?' Gwen asked him wonderingly.

'I don't. Why would I want to? But this is nothing, you'd be surprized at how similar Elizabethan England is to your own time. Look over there' he said as they walked along. He pointed over at a man shovelling manure.

'They've got recycling' he explained his point to her

'Water cooler moment' he said, pointing in another direction and Gwen saw two men talking by a large water barrel.

They kept walking and passed a man declaring the end of the world.

'And the world will be consumed by flame!' they heard him finishing.

'Global warming' the Doctor beamed, and Gwen snorted at the confused look on the preacher's face.

'Is he for real?' she asked as they walked around a corner.

'Well, yeah, but it won't happen until the year five billion' the Doctor shrugged it off.

'Well at least he's prepared' Gwen laughed and the Doctor chuckled too, before picking up on his earlier point.

'Oh, yes, and... entertainment! Popular entertainment for the masses. If I'm right, we're just down the river by Southwark right next to…' he trailed off, taking Gwen's hand and pulling her further up the new street.

Then it came into side, a massive building set up on higher ground, shaped with fourteen sides. Gwen gasped when she saw it, she knew that building!

'Oh my god, The Globe Theatre!' she cheered in delight.

'Yes! Brand new. Just opened. Through, strictly speaking, it's not a globe; it's a Tetradecagon, 14 sides, containing the man himself' the Doctor said just as happy as Gwen was.

'William Shakespeare, one of the finest authors of them all. The absolutely best case study in drama and theatres. Oh I loved Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet, all of them!' Gwen beamed happily. She then clutched the Doctor's arm excitedly.

'Can we go see him?' she asked him pleadingly. That would be so amazing, meeting the genius himself!

'Oh, yes!' the Doctor grinned at her. Gwen laughed and linked her arm through his.

'Good Doctor, would you be a gentleman and take a fair lady to the theatre?' she asked, putting on a posh English accent. The Doctor laughed as he began walking with her.

'Miss Cooper, it would be a pleasure' he said in the same voice. Laughing, the two of them set off together.

'When you get home, you can tell everyone you've seen Shakespeare' the Doctor said brightly.

'Yeah, and then they'll dump me in a loony-bin!' she said cheerfully yet very sarcastically. The Doctor just laughed. There was a strong chance that would indeed happen if she ever said anything.

…

The theatre had been packed jam full, and it stank. At first Gwen had wrinkled her nose and complained quietly to the Doctor about it, but when the show had started the smell was the last thing on her mind.

It was incredible, so real and fantastic, that by the time it ended, Gwen was clapping the loudest out of everyone, and cheering madly.

'That was amazing! Just amazing. It's worth putting up with the stink! And those are men dressed as women, yeah' Gwen turned to the Doctor, who rolled his eyes fondly at her.

'Humans never change' he smirked. Gwen grinned and turned back to the stage.

'But where's Shakespeare? I wanna see Shakespeare! Author! Author!' she began calling, before she turned to the Doctor who was staring at her.

'Do people shout that? Do they shout "Author"?' she asked uncertainly. Suddenly a man standing behind them began chanting the word, and then another and another until everyone in the crowd was shouting for the author to come and greet them.

'Well… they do now' the Doctor smiled as Gwen laughed. At that moment, the doors behind the stage burst open and a man dressed in fine black clothing came swaggering out. He was slim and tall and had wavy brown hair flecked with silver, and to be honest, he was gorgeous. The crowd began to cheer even louder.

'Oh he's a bit nice I thought he would be older' Gwen gushed.

'Excuse me Miss Cooper but you have a fellow already' the Doctor playfully scolded her.

'I know, but all the same, he's rather dishy' Gwen smirked devilishly.

'Never mind dishy, he's complete genius! He's a genius, THE genius. The most Human Human that's ever been. Now we're gonna hear him speak. Always, he chooses the best words. New, beautiful, brilliant words' the Doctor grinned excitedly at the chance to hear Shakespeare speaking.

'Shut your big fat mouths!' Shakespeare cried and the Doctor's face fell. Gwen burst into hysterics at his expression and the crowd started laughing at Shakespeare's words.

'Oh, well' the Doctor sighed disappointedly.

'You should never meet your heroes' Gwen patted his arm comfortingly before turning her attention back to Shakespeare.

'You have excellent taste! I'll give you that. Oh, that's a wig!' he said, pointing to a man in the audience, making the crowd laugh again.

'I know what you're all saying. 'Love's Labour's Lost', that's a funny ending, isn't it? It just stops! Will the boys get the girls? Well, don't get your hose in a tangle, you'll find out soon. Yeah, yeah. All in good time. You don't rush a genius' he said bowing, making the crowd clap louder.

'When? Tomorrow night!' Shakespeare cheered. Behind him the cast looked shocked, but the crowd roared its approval.

'The premiere of my brand new play. A sequel, no less, and I call it 'Loves Labour's Won'' he cheered and the crowd went wild once more. Gwen and the Doctor both frowned though, lost in deep thoughts.

…

The Doctor and Gwen were leaving the theatre with the rest of the crowd before either of them broke their silence.

'I'm not trying to brag of anything, but I'm a bit of an expert when it comes to Shakespeare, and I've never heard of 'Loves Labour's Won'. I've read 'Love's Labour's lost', but it doesn't have a sequel' Gwen shook her head, certain of her facts.

'Exactly, it's the lost play. It doesn't exist… only in rumours. It's mentioned in lists of his plays but never ever turns up. No one knows why' the Doctor said thoughtfully.

'Well then, why don't we stay to find out' Gwen asked excitedly, and grinning, the Doctor nodded at her.

'Gwen Cooper, I like the way you think' the Doctor nodded at her.

'So, how did it disappear in the first place?' Gwen asked.

'No idea, but I think I know a man who might have an answer' the Doctor smiled at her and Gwen's mouth dropped open.

'You don't mean… we're going to meet him?!' she asked, grinning from ear to ear.

'Oh yes!' the Doctor beamed, before he grabbed her hand and they were off running.

…

After asking around, the Doctor and Gwen discovered that Shakespeare apparently stayed at a local pub called The Elephant Inn whilst in the city, not too far from the Globe theatre. They quickly strode through the streets until Gwen spotted a large stonework building with a sign swinging from the wall, a picture of a black elephant on it.

'There it is' she nudged the Doctor, who turned and spotted the inn too.

'Good spot PC Cooper, with me' the Doctor said, pretending to sound like a police sergeant. Gwen chuckled and swatted his arm playfully as they boldly walked into the inn.

To their surprise, they found it empty. The place was open and inn up with lamps, but there was nobody around to book them into the inn.

'Where is everyone?' Gwen asked curiously.

'No idea, maybe upstairs' the Doctor shrugged, heading for the rickety stone and wood stairs. Gwen followed him up and the two of them came to a long dark hallway on the landing. The flickering light of a candle was pouring out of an ajar door, casting some light around the doorway. The Doctor and Gwen headed for it. As they drew closer, they heard people talking inside.

'You haven't even finished it yet!' a young male voice was saying to someone in shock. Gwen immediately recognised it as one of the actors from the play's voice.

'I've just got the final scene to go. You'll get it by morning' an older voice sighed. This voice belonged to Shakespeare. At that moment, the Doctor knocked loudly on the door, pushing it open and stepping inside. Gwen instantly followed him and looked around.

Shakespeare was sitting at a large desk with parchment and quills littering it, and two other men, the two actors, were sitting on the other side of the desk. All three of them were looking at the two time travellers in shock and wonder.

'Hello! Excuse me! I'm not interrupting, am I? Mr. Shakespeare, isn't it?' the Doctor beamed at Shakespeare who groaned and rubbed his head.

'Oh no, no, no, no. Who let you in? No autographs. No, you can't have yourself sketched with me. And please don't ask where I get my ideas from. Thanks for the interest. Now be a good boy and shove…' Shakespeare started, clearly thinking they were obsessed fans, when he noticed Gwen standing beside the Doctor, and his face and eyes lit up excitedly.

'Hey, nonny nonny. Sit right down here next to me' he winked at her, looking her up and down appreciatively, his eyes lingering a little too long over her chest and curves. Gwen smirked slightly, oh yes, she was a very sexy lady and she knew it, even men from over four hundred years ago could tell that! Shakespeare turned to the two actors in the room quickly.

'You two get sewing on them costumes. Off you go' he shooed them away, clearly wanting Gwen all to himself, not that he was going to have her in the first place.

'Come on, lads. I think our William's found his new muse' the land-lady said, a woman with blondish brown hair hanging loose in a white and brown dress said, suddenly appearing at the door behind the Doctor and Gwen.

'Sweet lady such unusual clothes. So... fitted' the wordsmith said flirtingly as Gwen casually and equally flirtatiously lowered herself in the chair opposite him. The Doctor smirked at her as he sat in the other chair.

'Um, verily, forsooth, egads' Gwen muttered, trying to form a sentence out of the long forgotten words. With her welsh accent, they sounded even stranger than normal.

'No, no, don't do that. Don't. The Tardis causes our speech to fit whatever era we land in' he whispered to her and he dug around in his pocket. Gwen blinked and was about to reply, but before she could the Doctor found what he was looking for and held out a sort of wallet with a blank white card inside.

'I'm Sir Doctor of TARDIS and this is my companion, Dame Gwen Cooper, of the Cardiff Coopers' the Doctor introduced them both, holding the card out for Shakespeare to read. But the author frowned as he looked at the card.

'Interesting, that bit of paper. It's blank' he said wonderingly, and the Doctor gapped at him. That man… was a genius to see that!

'Oh, that's... very clever. That proves it. Absolute genius' the Doctor beamed, very impressed now. He had thought Shakespeare was good before, but this, this sealed the deal in the Doctor's eyes. William Shakespeare was one of the clever men ever!

Gwen, however, was more than confused. She had plucked the paper out of the Doctor's hand and was reading it for herself.

'No, it says right there, black and white. Sir Doctor, Dame Gwen. It's clearly written right here!' Gwen protested.

'And I say it's blank' Shakespeare shook his head determinedly.

'Psychic paper. Basically it shows people whatever I want them to see. Saves an awful lot of time… normally' the Doctor whispered to Gwen, but the author still heard some of his words.

'Psychic? Never heard that before and words are my trade. Who are you exactly? More's the point, who is your beautiful Welsh-born lady?' the author asked, eying Gwen's figure again. She chuckled slightly. William was not the first, nor would he be the last, to look at her like that.

'Like he said, Dame Gwen Cooper' Gwen smirked at him.

'Curious, you speak with such strength and character and yet your eyes say you are here by consequences to events beyond your control rather than your own decision. I wonder why that is?' the author looked at her inquisitively.

'Perhaps your Medically-Learned companion here brought you here against your will?' he turned and eyed the Doctor with suspicion. The Doctor scowled and rolled his eyes.

'Why? Why does everybody think I'm a kidnapper?' he asked the heavens above him. Jackie, Gwen, and now Shakespeare! It was so unfair!

'Oh he didn't kidnap me, I just sort of tagged along with him, but he chose to come here' Gwen put in here. After all, the last thing she needed was the Doctor getting carted off and believed to be a woman abductor. Without him, she'd never get the Tardis to take her home again!

'I see. Than if you are no prisoner, you are free to say, end the night with another dashing male' he waggled his eyebrows at her. The Doctor groaned as Gwen giggled and opened her mouth to reply, but before she could get a word out, the door banged open again. And in came a rather large man draped in a black and golden threaded cloak, and matching hat set upon his fiery ginger hair. He had a match beard of red hair, and a scowl upon his face.

'Excuse me!' the man barked, barging in importantly. Gwen's eyebrows flew up to her hairline at the man's rudeness.

'Hold hard a moment. This is abominable behaviour. A new play with no warning? I demand to see a script, Mr Shakespeare. As Master of the Revels, every new script must be registered at my office and examined by me before it can be performed' he shouted at Shakespeare loudly, his face turning an ugly shade of red.

'Tomorrow morning, first thing, I'll send it 'round' Shakespeare sighed.

'I don't work to your schedule, you work to mine. The script, now!' the man demanded, and Gwen had finally had enough of his rudeness and arrogance.

'Ok mate, just calm down, there's no need to get angry' Gwen said, standing up in front of the man, the copper in her rising to the surface. The man turned to her and glared down at her.

'Silence wench! The business of men is not a place to stick your nose in. remember your place woman' he shouted in her face before turning back to William. Gwen's face was beet-red with rage, and she opened her mouth to yell at him, but the man spoke to the author before she could get the words out.

'Script, now' he ordered once more. It was the final time he was going to ask.

'I can't' Shakespeare shook his head sadly.

'Then tomorrow's performance is cancelled' the man declared pompously.

'Oh yeah, and why's that then?' Gwen snapped at him, and the man turned back to face her and the Doctor, who was sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, not wanting to get involved in the argument like Gwen had.

'It is because I'm returning to my office for a banning order. If it's the last thing I do, 'Love's Labour's Won' will never be played' he spat, before he was sweeping out of the room. Gwen turned to a rather put of Shakespeare.

'Who was that git?' she asked sharply.

'That… was the ever-charming Mr Lynley. And he's right. With that order, I'm afraid my play will never be performed now' Shakespeare said miserably.

'Well, then… I guess that's one mystery solved. That's 'Love's Labour's Won' over and done with. Pity, I was hoping for something a bit more… unexpected' the Doctor note disappointedly. And then as if his words had been a queue, the sound of screaming suddenly rang out through the night. Gwen turned to the Doctor, and both nodding to the other, the two of them sprinted from the room.

…

The Doctor and Gwen raced down the stairs, through the area downstairs, before they came out onto the street. Not far from them they saw Lynley, he was gagged and spitting up water, clutching desperately at his throat.

'It's that Lynley bloke' Gwen quickly observed, looking around to see who was else was watching. Important rule of policing, 'Watch the watchers'.

'What's wrong with him? Leave it to me, I'm a doctor' he called out as several people went to approach. He raced over and supported Lynley, gently lowering him to the ground.

'I know CPR from the beat' Gwen added, rushing over to help. She quickly felt for a pulse, and managed to find a weak one, but already it was fading, they didn't have much time.

'Gwen, help him!' the Doctor shouted as he felt a strange itch at the back of his head. A sort of… psychic twitch, coinciding with the exact moment Lynley had fell still, throwing up yet more water.

Gwen leaned down and listened for a heartbeat, whilst the Doctor stood and ran off to look at something down the street, that annoying little itch still there.

'Right. One, two, three, four, five. One, two, three, four, five' Gwen repeated over and over again as she began doing compressions on his chest. Just as she was about to start administering the kiss of life, more water flooded out of Lynley's mouth.

'What the bloody hell is that?' Gwen asked in disgust. The Doctor came back to her and leaned down, examining the now sadly dead body, it was too late to save him.

'I've never seen a death like it. His lungs are full of water, he drowned and then... I dunno, like a blow to the heart, an invisible blow' he muttered to Gwen, before he stood and turned around to face the landlady, Dolly Bailey.

'Good mistress, this poor fellow has died from a sudden imbalance of the humours. A natural if unfortunate demise. Call a constable and have him taken away' he ordered but in a kind voice.

'Yes, sir' Dolly nodded, about to turn away when a maid came up to them.

'I'll do it, ma'am' she said, turning away. But as she went, Gwen caught a small satisfied smirk on the maid's face. The ex-police officer narrowed her eyes; she'd be keeping an eye on her. The Doctor crouched back down beside the body again.

'So, I take it you don't want to tell them the real reason? Why's that then, what really caused his death?' Gwen whispered to him, having been listening to his words and frowning at his lie. She may not be a doctor, but she knew there was nothing 'natural' about this man's death.

'An invisible blow to the heart, what else could have caused that?' the Doctor looked at her pointedly, expecting her to know the answer, but Gwen just shrugged, out of ideas.

'Witchcraft' he said darkly, and Gwen's eyes widened.

'Right… and if you tell them that, they'll panic, since they've still got a boot caught in the dark ages' Gwen realised and the Doctor nodded.

…

The Doctor had stayed outside to talk to the police man collecting Lynley's body himself, just to reiterate the story he wanted to be followed. Meanwhile Gwen has gone inside and spoke to Dolly, asking her to get them a room for the night. Whilst they could stay in the Tardis if they wanted too, the Doctor wanted to be close at hand until he figured this out, plus they could see or overhear something vital whilst being at the inn.

Once both tasks were being seen too, the Doctor and Gwen had met up with Shakespeare in his room again, listening as the writer mused about poor Lynley's death.

I got you a room, Sir Doctor. You and Miss Cooper are just across the landing' Dolly said as she came into the room, and when the Doctor nodded his appreciation, she nodded and left them too it.

'Poor Lynley. So many strange events. Not least of all, this land of Freedonia where a woman can be trained on how to save a life? On the beat you said, tell me, are you a Police Constable?' William asked, looking at Gwen with a raised eyebrow.

'You are observant aren't you Will?' Gwen smirked at him, evading the question.

'It's a land where a woman can be what she likes' The Doctor added, feeling a small part of his mind wanting to defend his friend for her career choices. Shakespeare turned to him, looking interestedly at the time lord.

'And you, Sir Doctor. How can a man so young have eyes so old?' he asked.

'I do a lot of reading' the Doctor shrugged, not about to let out the fact that he was actually older than over 900 years.

'A trite reply. Yeah, that's what I'd do' Will smirked, before turning back to Gwen.

'But you, you stand you brave and strong, you have so much to fight for, so much _worth_ fighting for, but can you be the one to fight his darkness? To save him like you saved everyone else you have?' Will asked her and Gwen looked on with wide eyes. What darkness? She… she didn't know. She was a police officer, or at least, she had been, but… she didn't know. She had just followed the Doctor because his spaceship wouldn't let her go… but now, now she was realising just how little she knew him. That… would have to change if she was going to go on anymore adventures with him.

'I think we should say good night' was what she finally replied with, before she turned and left. The Doctor turned and looked at Shakespeare, a little disturbed by the man's perception of his darkness. Oh he had darkness alright, but how did Will know that?

'I must work. I have a play to complete. But I'll get my answers tomorrow, Doctor, and I'll discover more about you and why this constant performance of yours' Shakespeare stated calmly.

'All the world's a stage' the Doctor shrugged it off evasively, heading to the doorway to follow Gwen.

'Hm, I might use that. Good night, Doctor' William smiled.

'Nighty-night, Shakespeare' the Doctor winked before he left the author to his writing.

…

When the Doctor went into their room, he found Gwen stood in the centre, looking around curiously, taking in the old inn's room.

'Yeah, it's not exactly five-star, is it?' the Doctor said apologetically.

'Oh believe me, after spending one mission uncover as a smack-head and staying in a crack-den, this place is like the Ritz' Gwen smirked at him. The Doctor laughed.

'Yes I can see that look in you, Gwen Cooper, Crazy Smack-head' he laughed as he flopped down onto the bed.

'No crazier than a madman with a box' Gwen chuckled, lying down next to him.

'Now Miss Cooper, you've got a fellow you know, I'd hate to be the other man and we are on a bed' the Doctor teased. Gwen smacked his arm playfully.

'Shut up, I'm not sleeping on the floor so we'll have to share. It'll be alright, we just need to make sure we don't end up on top of each other' Gwen rolled her eyes amusedly at him.

'I know, I was only kidding. Right now, we have a mystery to solve. Once it's done I'll take you back to your bloke if you like' the Doctor offered.

Gwen frowned. Did she want to go back to Rhys and her team? Yes, yes she honestly did. But she also wanted to stay with the Doctor just a little bit longer. Maybe one more place after this would be alright. He could just drop her back in her timeline and the interruption would go unnoticed.

'I don't need to go back quite yet. But like you said, mystery to solve. So, magic and stuff. That's a surprise. It's a little bit Harry Potter' she smirked.

'Wait till you read Book Seven. Oh, I cried' the Doctor shook his head.

'But it can't be real can it? I mean, witches and all that rubbish… then again, I've met Fairies and felt as lost as a ghost… but witches and magic, that's a bit far' Gwen noted.

'You're right. It's not really magic, more a different kind of science. Like you humans use numbers, but some species use words' the Doctor nodded in agreement.

'I see, but we use machines to channel numbers, so how do they use channel their words… do they just say it or…' Gwen trailed off, frowning thoughtfully.

'What is it?' the Doctor looked at her. He knew that look well. Rose would always get in when she was figuring something out. Oh Gwen was a lot like her wasn't she? But to him, there would only ever be one Rose.

'I was just thinking, what if… the words are channelled through a story… like the kind Shakespeare's still writing' she theorised aloud.

'You think Love Labour's Won is a weapon?' the Doctor asked her with a raised eyebrow. That… that was absolute genius!

'Could be' Gwen shrugged tiredly.

'Oh Gwen Cooper, you're a star! Isn't she R…?' the Doctor beamed, before he's expression fell into one of misery, having momentarily let himself slip.

Gwen looked at him sharply, a look of pity in her eyes.

'Your friend?' she asked softly. The Doctor silently nodded.

'Who was she?' she asked softly. The Doctor inhaled sharply, rubbing his hands down his face.

'Her name was Rose… Rose Tyler, she was… she was…' he trailed off. She was so many things. Beautiful, lovely, caring, amazing, brilliant, clever, but most of all… she was his Rose.

'You loved her' Gwen noted, and the Doctor nodded sadly.

'What happened to her?' Gwen asked gently, putting a hand on his arm.

'I… I lost her… in the Battle of Canary Wharf' the Doctor said miserably and Gwen gasped. She remembered that day so vividly. The day she thought the world would end.

'I'm so sorry. Which one got her, those Cybermen things or the other ones… err… I can't remember their names' she frowned.

'They were called Daleks, but Rose isn't dead, she… there was this moment, at the end of the battle, me and Rose were by these two levers which we were using to suck the Daleks and the Cybermen into a different dimension called the void' the Doctor began to explain. He didn't know why he was telling Gwen this, he never really said anything this personal about himself to anyone but Rose, but… he was still so raw from her loss, he just… needed someone to know how special Rose Tyler really was.

'It was you that saved us?' Gwen asked shocked.

'Oh it was my Rose that saved you, not me' the Doctor smiled proudly before it faded again.

'The levers, they caused the suction of the Daleks and the Cybermen going, kept the pull on them strong, but then Rose's lever slipped out of place. She had to put it back, but it was pulling us both in too. And she just… couldn't hold on' the Doctor sighed, a tear forming in the corner of his eye.

'And she fell?' Gwen asked, sounding horrified. Was the poor girl trapped with all those monsters?

The Doctor nodded miserably.

'Just before she fell into the Void though, a parallel version of her father that we'd met caught her and teleported them both back to his own universe. But it was sealed off when the void was closed, and it's gone now, I can never see her ever again' he choked at, more tears falling down his cheek. Gwen rolled over and pulled him into a hug.

The Doctor clung to her, crying a little more openly now, trying hard to get his composure back but he just… couldn't. The pain of Rose not being there hurt too much. Too much for him to keep the tears at bay.

'Hush now, it'll be ok, you'll find someone else, just… never forget her, remember just how amazing she was too you' Gwen told him kindly, trying to help him. she'd had to do this far too many times before, comfort those left behind when people died, but she hated it so much, seeing such pain. And if she could help the Doctor with his then by god she would.

The Doctor took a sharp breath, rubbing his eyes, drying his tears.

'Anyway, tomorrow let's get this thing solved so we can go somewhere else' the Doctor quickly changed the conversation, pulling out of the hug and turning away. He was very embarrassed about that slip, he really hadn't meant to tell Gwen all that, but it was too late now. He really hoped she'd get that he didn't want to talk about it anymore, and thankfully, she did.

'Alright, but let's go somewhere… beautiful, fun, amazing, or maybe all three' Gwen brightly suggested, picking up on the hint which the Doctor was highly grateful for.

'You got it, Gwen Cooper' the Doctor smiled weakly at her, and Gwen smiled back at him before she rolled over and blew out the candle providing them with light, plunging them into darkness.

It wasn't long before Gwen was asleep, but the Doctor, he laid awake, fondly reflecting over his time with a certain amazing blonde girl called Rose.

…

The Doctor was still reflecting over his travels with Rose when suddenly there came a loud screaming, ringing through the night and not too far from them, within the very same building in fact. Gwen sat up with a start as the Doctor leapt off the bed, running for the door.

'What was that?!' Gwen cried as she quickly followed him, both of them running out of their room and across the hall to where the scream had come from.

Barging through the door to Shakespeare's room, they both ground to a halt at what they found. Shakespeare was fast asleep at his desk, his head on the parchment and a quill in hand. The window was wide open, letting the cool night wind inside, and there, lying dead on the floor was Dolly, the landlady.

Upon their intrusion into his room, Will woke with a start, his eyes groggy as he looked at them.

'Wha'? What was that?' he slurred weakly, and Gwen noted that he didn't sound tired, not really, more like he had been drugged. Behind him she spotted the open window, and quickly rushed over to it, in the hopes of spotting someone, something, fleeing the scene.

When Gwen looked out though, her mouth dropped open at what she saw, something she had definitely NOT been expecting to see. There, cackling loud in the night, riding on a broom no less, was a woman, flying away, illuminated by the moon.

'Her heart gave out. She died of fright' she heard the Doctor say behind her, for he was crouched on the floor, examining Dolly's body.

'Doctor!' she called to him, and he dashed over to her sided.

'What did you see?' he asked her hurriedly.

'A witch' Gwen stated and the Doctor's eyes widened, before they both looked out the window again, wondering what the hell was going on around that inn.

…

As dawn arrived, it found the Doctor and Gwen sitting at Will's desk, the famous writer on the other side, all three of them clutching a tanker of strong tea which Gwen had managed to put together using supplies from the inn's kitchen.

The Doctor and Gwen were both trying to get something useful out of the writer, but he was just repeating how tragic Dolly's loss was, which in fairness, to him it was.

'Oh, sweet Dolly Bailey. She sat out three bouts of the plague in this place. We all ran like rats. But what could have scared her so? She had such enormous spirit' William mused aloud.

'"Rage, rage against the dying of the light."' The Doctor quoted forlornly.

'I might use that' Will stated.

'You can't. It's someone else's' Gwen smirked, rolling her eyes at the Doctor, before she went onto making her own observation.

'The thing is though, Lynley drowned on dry land, Dolly died of fright and they were both connected to you' she noted aloud.

'You're accusing me?' Shakespeare narrowed his eyebrows at her.

'No, I didn't mean that, but I saw a witch, large as you like, flying, cackling away, and you've written about witches' Gwen pointed out.

'I have? When was that?' Will frowned.

'Not, not quite yet' the Doctor whispered to her and Gwen's eyes widened as she realised her mistake.

'Peter Streete spoke of witches' Shakespeare suddenly noted aloud, and both Gwen and the Doctor's heads snapped back to him. Now THAT sounded like a lead to Gwen if she had ever heard one.

'Who's Peter Streete?' Gwen asked, her copper interrogation skills flaring up.

'Our builder. He sketched the plans to the Globe' Will informed them.

'The architect. Hold on. The architect! The architect! The Globe! Come on!' the Doctor yelled excitedly before he dashed from the room. Gwen knew that he was putting the pieces together, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out what he'd worked out.

And so, after sharing a bewildered look with Shakespeare, Gwen dashed off after him, not protesting as the writer followed along too.

…

The three of them headed straight to the theatre, the Doctor leading the way, and when they arrived, the Time Lord had jumped down into the pit, standing in the middle and spinning in a slow circle, looking around, whilst Gwen and Will stood on the stage, watching him intently.

'The columns there, right? 14 sides. I've always wondered but I never asked... tell me, Will, why 14 sides?' he called over to the writer.

'It was the shape Peter Streete thought best, that's all. Said it carried the sound well' William shrugged.

'Why does that ring a bell? 14…' the Doctor muttered, frowning in deep concentration.

'A sonnet has 14 lines' Gwen reminded him.

'So there is. Good point. Words and shapes following the same design. 14 lines, 14 sides, 14 facets…Oh, my head. Tetradecagon… think, think, think! Words, letters, numbers, lines!' he cried, beginning to run his hands through his hair, making it stick up even more wildly than it normally did.

'This is just a theatre' Shakespeare cried out, rolling his eyes.

'Oh, but a theatre's magic, isn't it? You should know. Stand on this stage; say the right words with the right emphasis at the right time… Oh, you can make men weep, or cry with joy, change them. You can change people's minds just with words in this place. And if you exaggerate that…' the Doctor's eyes when very wide as that last realisation hit him.

'It's just like the Tardis, a small wooden box on the outside but with all that life inside it!' Gwen added excitedly.

'Oh. Oh, Gwen Cooper, I like you. Tell you what, though. Peter Streete would know. Can I talk to him?' the Doctor asked of Shakespeare, and Gwen turned to him too. She was sure that if anybody could provide an answer to what The Globe had to do with all this, Peter Street would be the one to do so.

'You won't get an answer. A month after finishing this place, he lost his mind' Will shook his head sadly.

'Why? What happened to him?' Gwen asked curiously.

'Started raving about witches, hearing voices, babbling. His mind was addled' Will shrugged. Gwen frowned slightly. There was no way that was a coincidence. That sounded like someone covering their tracks to the ex-copper.

'Where is he now?' the Doctor asked softly.

'Bedlam' Shakespeare shivered slightly at the thought of the place.

'What's Bedlam?' Gwen asked in confusion.

'Bethlem Hospital. The madhouse' Will said darkly.

'We're gonna go there. Right now. Come on' the Doctor ordered, jumping up onto the stage to exit the theatre, Gwen right behind him.

'Wait! I'm coming with you. I want to witness this at first hand!' Shakespeare cried as he made to follow them.

As they when through a door to get off the stage, they past two actors, and Will quickly went over to them.

'Ralph, the last scene as promised. Copy it, hand it round. Learn it. Speak it. Back before curtain up. Remember, kid, project. Eyes and teeth. You never know, the Queen might turn up' the told the young man who looked at him hopefully. But as Will moved away and caught up to Gwen, the writer added something under his breath.

'As if. She never does' he grunted as he followed the Doctor and Gwen out onto the street, before he turned his attention to the attractive woman he was walking next to.

'So, tell me of Freedonia, where women can be police constables, writers, actors' Will asked of her.

'This country's ruled by a woman' Gwen pointed out to him.

'Ah, she's royal. That's God's business. Though you are a royal beauty' he flirted and Gwen smirked. Yep, she still had it.

'And you're rather hansom yourself, but I've already got a fiancée that I love very much… and you have a wife in the city' she reminded him sternly. But Shakespeare wasn't put off, in fact, his smile widened slightly.

'But Gwen, this is Town' he winked and Gwen giggled. At that moment the Doctor slowed his pace to their and turned his attention to the two humans.

'Come on. We can all have a good flirt later' he said impatiently, wanting to get this thing solved as quickly as possible.

'Is that a promise, Doctor?' Shakespeare eyed him appreciatively and Gwen burst out laughing. The Doctor blushed slightly, but managed to make a final comment.

'Oh, 57 academics just punched the air. Now move!' he ordered again, before leading the smug writer and the giggle copper off once more.

…

When they had arrived at their destination, Gwen looked around in horror at the building which supposedly was a hospital. It was more like a bloody prison! Loud screams and moans echoed around, and the 'wards' were in fact barred cells, many people screaming, pleading, and crying from within.

A jailer was leading the three of them through the hospital to Peter Street's cell, the Jailer taking far too much pleasure in his line of work for the Doctor and Gwen's liking. Will didn't seem to badly affected, but even he didn't look happy about the conditions of the 'hospital'.

'Does my lord, Doctor, wish some entertainment while he waits? I'd whip these madmen. They'll put on a good show for ya. Bandog and Bedlam!' he laughed and Gwen glared at the cruel man.

'No, I don't!' the Doctor growled at him.

'Wait here, my lords, while I make him decent for the lady' he suddenly stopped them, beginning to work away.

'Don't bother on my account' Gwen spat through gritted teeth as his retreating shadow. This was disgusting. She'd been in prisons before, and those places always haunted her, but this… this was just awful. Angrily, she rounded on Will.

'So this is what you call a hospital, yeah? Where the patients are whipped to entertain the gentry? And you put your friend in here?' she glared at him and he glared right back.

'Oh, and it's all so different in Freedonia' he rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed.

'But you're a genius! Surely you can't agree with this place?' she countered.

'I've been mad. I've lost my mind. Fear of this place set me right again. It serves its purpose' the writer shrugged. Gwen was about to what he meant by going mad, before she remembered her history and sighed.

'Your son' she said softly and Will nodded forlornly.

'My only boy. The Black Death took him. I wasn't even there' he sighed regrettably.

'I'm sorry, it must have been awful to not even get a goodbye' Gwen patted his arm consolingly.

'It made me question everything. The futility of this fleeting existence. To be or not to be... oh, that's quite good' he mused aloud at his own words.

'You should write that down' the Doctor told him with the smallest of smiles. Gwen smiled slightly. Hearing those famous words from the man himself was amazing. It was almost like hearing Queen Victoria saying 'We are not amused'. Gwen would love to hear her say that!

'Hm, maybe not. A bit pretentious?' Will asked and the Doctor shrugged a half affirmative.

'This way, milord!' the jailer's voice called and the three of them continued down the hall to its origin. When they arrived, they found him standing in a cell, towering over a man with greyish brown hair, rocking back and forth, his arms curled around his knees as he made himself as small as possible. He was a pitiful sight.

'They can be dangerous, milord. Don't know their own strength' the jailer warned as they all stepped inside.

'I think it helps if you don't whip them! Now get out!' the Doctor snapped at him and he hastily left whilst the Doctor slowly approached the cowering form of Peter Street.

'Peter? Peter Streete?' the Doctor asked, crouching down before the timid little man.

'He's the same as he was. You'll get nothing out of him' Will informed him. The Doctor ignored him; instead he put a hand on the man's shoulder comfortingly.

'Peter?' he asked again and suddenly Peter's head snapped up, causing Gwen to jump slightly. He looked around with wild glassy blue eyes, before they settled on the Doctor and he whimpered again.

When the madman failed to speak however, the Doctor gently placed his fingertips to his temples, before he spoke in a slow, slightly hypnotic voice.

'Peter, I'm the Doctor. Go into the past, one year ago. Let your mind go back, back to when everything was fine and shining. Everything that happened in this year since happened to somebody else. It was just a story. A winter's tale. Let go. Listen. That's it, just let go' he whispered, gently laying Peter back so he was lying on the floor.

'Tell me the story, Peter. Tell me about the witches' the Doctor ordered, and Peter instantly obeyed. Gwen leaned in slightly, not wanting to miss a single word.

'Witches spoke to Peter. In the night, they whispered. Got Peter to build the Globe to their design. THEIR design! The 14 walls — always 14. When the work was done… they sapped poor Peter's wits' he laughed crazily, talking as if Peter was somebody else and not him.

'Where did Peter see the witches? Where in the city? Peter, tell me. You've got to tell me, where were they?' the Doctor asked gently.

'All Hallows Street' Peter said darkly.

'Too many words' a new, rasping, voice hissed, making them all jump. Gwen's head snapped up and her mouth fell open, for there, in the cell, where she most certainly had NOT been a moment ago, was a witch. Old, wrinkled and ugly, with black flowing robes and even a crooked boiled nose, was a real live witch!

The Doctor and Gwen both back away slightly, taking in the creature's appearance.

'How the hell did she get here?!' Gwen asked, looking gobsmacked.

'Just one touch of the heart' the witch cackled before she leant down and placed the tip of her finger over Peter's chest, right over his heart.

'NOOO!' the Doctor yelled loudly as Peter screamed in pain, and then, before their very eyes, the poor man died, literally cursed into oblivion

'Witch! I'm seeing a witch!' Will breathed, looking stunned.

'Who would be next, hmm? Just one touch' the witch sneered, waggling her finger playfully at the trio.

'Oh, oh, I'll stop your frantic hearts. Poor, fragile mortals' she cackled mockingly. Gwen darted to the doors, grabbing the bars and rattling them loudly.

'Let us out of here, someone, please!' she shouted desperately.

'That's not gonna work. The whole building's shouting that' the Doctor reminded her and Gwen stopped.

'Who will die first, hmm?' the witch smirked coldly at them.

'Well, if you're looking for volunteers' the Doctor said calmly, beginning to walk forwards.

'What?! No!' Gwen shouted at him.

'Doctor, can you stop her?' Will asked fearfully.

'No mortal has power over me' the witch spat at him.

'Oh, but there's a power in words. If I can find the right one — if I can just know you…' the Doctor eyed her, his tone slightly manic and menacing.

'None on Earth has knowledge of us' she sneered at him.

'Then it's a good thing I'm here. Now think, think, think… Humanoid female, uses shapes and words to channel energy… ah, 14! That's it! 14! The 14 stars of the Rexel planetary configuration! Creature, I name you Carrionite!' the Doctor shouted triumphantly.

The Witch shrieked and wailed before she faded away in a strange light, disappearing from the cell completely.

'What… err… what the hell did you just do?' Gwen looked at the Doctor weakly, words starting to fail her.

'I named her. The power of a name. That's old magic' he winked at her, making Gwen roll her eyes but she was smiling.

'You said there was no such thing as magic' she teased him.

'And there isn't! Remember, I said it was a different kind of science, words and shapes and now I know what's channelling the energy' the Doctor beamed at her.

'The Globe' Gwen guessed.

'Oh yes!' the Doctor cheered, but at the moment, Shakespeare chose to interrupt them.

'But what are they doing here? What do they want?' Will asked apprehensively.

'The end of the world' the Doctor said grimly, and without another word, he used the sonic on the locked cell door, and within seconds the three of them were on their way to stop the Carrionites before they allowed the end to really happen.

…

After their escape, the Doctor, Gwen, and Shakespeare had returned to the inn, and were back in Shakespeare's room, discussing what they had learnt.

'The Carrionites disappeared way back at the dawn of the universe. Nobody was sure if they were real or legend' the Doctor explained to the writer and Gwen.

'Well, I'm going for real' Will drily commented.

'So they want to bring about the end of the earth, but why?' Gwen looked at the Doctor, hoping he'd have an answer.

'They want to begin a new empire on Earth. A world of bones and blood and witchcraft' he said grimly.

'And how are they gonna manage that?' Gwen asked, trying her best to sound calm and not panicking like she knew she was close to doing. But she had to hold it together. She was once a police officer! She had to be strong and calm and hold it together!

'I'm looking at the man with the words' the Doctor replied vaguely, eyeing Shakespeare intently.

'Me? But I've done nothing' Will frowned at him defensively.

'Hold on, though. What were you doing last night, when that Carrionite was in the room?' Gwen asked him.

'Finishing the play' he shrugged, not seeing the relevance.

'What happens on the last page?' the Doctor frowned at him. Will sighed before he began to explain.

'The boys get the girls. They have a bit of a dance. It's all as funny and thought provoking as usual… except those last few lines. Funny thing is… I don't actually remember writing them' he added, sounding confused by his own actions.

'That's got to be it, they must have used you!' Gwen realised.

'Oh course! They gave you the final words. Like a spell, like a code. Gwen you were right! 'Love's Labour's Won' — it is a weapon! The right combination of words, spoken at the right place with the shape of the Globe as an energy converter! The play's the thing! And yes, you can have that' the Doctor added when Shakespeare began to smile.

The Doctor jumped up from his seat, looking around the room before spotting a map. He grabbed it and unfolded in on the table, the three of them peering down at it intently. Suddenly the Doctor pointed at a particular area on the map.

'All Hallows Street. There it is! Gwen, you and me we'll track them down. Will, you get to the Globe. Whatever you do, stop that play!' the Doctor said hurriedly.

'I'll do it' Will nodded happily, standing up and shaking the Doctor's hand.

'All these years I've been the cleverest man around. Next to you, I know nothing' the writer said with a smile.

'Oh I wouldn't say that, his ego will go through the roof' Gwen joked with a little giggle. The Doctor pouted and shook his head fondly.

'I'm not complaining, it's marvellous. Good luck, Doctor' Will told the time lord.

'Good luck, Shakespeare' he replied, before he headed towards the doorway, ready to leap into action.

'Once more unto the breach!' he quoted as he left the room.

'I like that. Wait a minute… that's one of mine!' Will realised. The Doctor poked his head back around the doorframe.

'Oh, just shift!' he shouted as Gwen laughed loudly, and it wasn't long before the two of them were off again.

…

Running as fast as they could, the Doctor and Gwen soon reached their destination.

'All Hallows Street, but which house?' the Doctor said as he paused, looking around at all the little wooden and straw houses.

'The thing is, though... am I missing something? The world didn't end in 1599. It just didn't. Look at me, I'm living proof' Gwen frowned, trying her past to get her head around all this.

'The future can change, I know that, but can the past, can that change too?' she asked worriedly.

'Oh, how to explain the mechanics of the infinite temporal flux? I know! 'Back to the Future'! It's like 'Back to the Future'' the Doctor turned to her.

'Are you serious?' Gwen scoffed.

'Totally! Marty McFly goes back and changes history' the Doctor started before Gwen cut in.

'And he starts fading away… Oh God, am I gonna fade?' she gaped at him.

'You, your fella, your friends and family, and the entire future of the human race. It ends right now in 1599 if we don't stop it. But which house?' the Doctor asked again. Suddenly, as if in response to his words, a door suddenly blew open, and they both turned to it, eying it silently.

'Ah, make that WITCH house' the Doctor smirked. Gwen shook her head.

'God that was terrible' she told him. The Doctor pouted slightly, before the two of them headed into the house, where they were clearly expected.

They slowly approached a rickety flight of stairs, and going up them they came out into a sort of bedroom, where a young woman draped in black robes, that maid from the inn, was stood, smirking at them, clearly one of the creatures too.

'I take it we're expected' the Doctor greeted her calmly.

'Oh, I think Death has been waiting for you a very long time' she smirked at him coolly.

'Right then, it's my go I think' Gwen said determinedly, stepping forward and pointing at the witch.

'Creature I name thee, Carrionite!' she cried. The witch let out a little mocking gasp, before she smirked, completely unaffected.

'Why didn't that work? What did I do wrong?' Gwen looked at the Doctor in disappointment.

'The power of a name works only once. Observe' the witch explained and Gwen turned back to face her. The witch pointed her own finger at Gwen.

'You meet what comes just like a trooper, and thus I name thee Gwen Cooper' she smirked, and instantly Gwen's eyes rolled back in her head as she collapsed backwards, the Doctor barely catching her before she hit the floor.

'What have you done?!' the Doctor shouted angrily as he gently lowered Gwen to the floor, brushing a stray bit of her hair behind her ear. The witch frowned at her finger, as if puzzled by it in some way.

'Only sleeping, alas. Curious, her name has less impact. She's somehow out of her time. And as for you, Sir Doctor!' she cried, pointing at him now. The Doctor barely responded to her.

'Fascinating. There is no name. Why would a man hide his title in such despair? Oh, but look… There's still one word with the power that aches' she smiled evilly at him.

'The naming won't work on me' the Doctor growled at her.

'But your heart grows cold. The north wind blows and carries down the distant... Rose' she smirked. A murderous expression spread over the Doctor's face and he took a few steps forwards, his very presence a clear threat to the creature, one she didn't heed.

'Oh, big mistake 'cos that name keeps me fighting! The Carrionites vanished! Where did you go?' he demanded, spitting flying from his mouth in his anger. How DARE she try to use Rose against him! He had never allowed anybody to use Rose herself, so he'd be damned if he'd let anyone use her memory like that either!

'The Eternals found the right word to banish us into deep darkness' the witch replied calmly, not bothered in the slightly by the Doctor angered state.

'And how did you escape?' he asked.

'New words. New and glittering from a mind like no other' the witch smirked.

'Shakespeare' the time lord realised.

'His son perished. The grief of a genius. Grief without measure. Madness enough to allow us entrance' the witch confirmed.

'How many of you?' the Doctor pressed.

'Just the three. But the play tonight shall restore the rest. Then the human race will be purged as pestilence. And from this world we will lead the universe back to the old ways of blood and magic' the witch declared.

'Hmm... Busy schedule... but first you gotta get past me' the Doctor told her calmly as he inched closer, standing face-to-face against her, both staring the other down.

'Oh, that should be a pleasure considering my enemy has such a handsome shape' she whispered seductively, running her fingers down his face.

'Now, that's one form of magic that's definitely not gonna work on me' the Doctor told her honestly.

'Oh, we'll see' she smirked, and then without warning, she grabbed a lock of his head and yanked it from his head before backing away.

The Doctor yelped at the unexpected pain and his hand flew up to his head, rubbing the sore spot gingerly.

'What did you do?' the Doctor demanded to know.

'Souvenir' the creature smirked, twisting the lock of hair around her fingers.

'Well, give it back!' the Doctor shouted, stepping forwards to grab it, but the witch merely smirked and threw up her arms. The window began her sprang open and she floated backwards out of it, levitating just outside, just out of his reach.

'Well, that's just cheating' the Doctor whined slightly.

'Behold, Doctor. Men to Carrionites are nothing but puppets' the witch told him triumphantly, pulling a small voodoo doll from her pocket and wrapping the Doctor's hair around it. Behind him, though unnoticed by either alien, Gwen was slowly coming too.

'Now, you might call that magic... I'd call that a DNA replication module' the Doctor eyed the doll warily.

'What use is your science now?' the witch smirked, before she stabbed the doll with a small pair of scissors.

The Doctor yelled out as pain erupted in his chest, right over his heart, and the witch laughed loudly before she flew away. The doctor collapsed to the ground, just as Gwen gained a handle on her surroundings.

Seeing to the Doctor down, she scrambled to her feet and ran over to him, dropping to her knees by his side.

'Oh my God! Doctor! Don't worry, I've got you' she whispered to him, rolling him onto his back and checking his pulse.

'Argh… Gwen… listen… I've got… two… two hearts… you need to… get my other one… started…' he panted weakly, his words deadly soft.

'What do you mean two hearts? That's impossible!' Gwen looked at funnily, silently wondering if he had hit his head when he fell.

'You're… in… 1599' he reminded her and her eyes widened. For her, that should have been impossible too, and so that meant… that it might just be possible that the Doctor really could have two hearts!

'Ok… CPR… one, two, three, four, five… one, two, three, four, five' she began beating on the Doctor's chest. He grunted in pain.

'No, no… no… Gwen… hit me… hit me on the back!' he groaned out, and within seconds Gwen flipped him over and smacked him hard on the back.

'Left a bit' the Doctor grunted and she smacked him again.

'Ah, lovely' he cried happily as his heart began beating again, before he rolled over and jumped to his feet, Gwen jumping up too.

'There we go! Ba-da-boom! Right than PC Cooper, we've got a plot to stop!' the Doctor beamed at her, before he rushed out, a relieved Gwen hurrying out after him.

…

Running through the streets, Gwen called out to the Doctor who was ahead of her when she noticed something very important.

'We're going the wrong way!' she yelled warningly at him.

'No, we're not!' he called back. He ran a few more yards, before he span around, running back the way they had come from

'We're going the wrong way!' he shouted to her. Gwen rolled her eyes and turned around, running back the way they had just come from.

'Really? I hadn't noticed' she scoffed and she heard the Doctor sniggering ahead of her.

When they were finally back on track to The Globe, they both ground to a halt as they stared ahead of them. The sound of screaming was echoing through the night, and reaching up from the distant theatre, far up into the sky, was a spinning red vortex of energy. Gwen stiffened. They were running out of time!

Running again, the Doctor overtook her as Gwen bumped into a man, that prophet from the other night.

'I told thee so! I told thee!' he was beaming happily, so proud of his 'prediction'

'No need to look so happy about it mate' Gwen shot at him before she ran after the Doctor without listening to the man's reply. Within minutes they were outside The Globe, the noise getting louder and louder the closer they got.

'Stage door!' the Doctor called to Gwen and the two of them headed for it. Overhead, large angry thunderclouds with lightning rippling over them burst into the sky, signalling that the invading forces would be there soon.

Barging through the backstage door, the Doctor and Gwen were met with the sight of Will sitting there, looking around dazedly, nursing his head.

'Stop the play! I think that was it. Yeah, I said, "Stop the play"!' the Doctor shouted when he saw him.

'I hit my head' Will mumbled feebly.

'Yeah well don't rub it you'll just make it worse' Gwen told him with a sigh.

'That and you'll go bald' the Doctor couldn't help but add. Suddenly a louder pitch of screaming met their ears, and the Doctor spun towards the stage door.

'I think that's my cue!' he cried as he rushed over to the door. Gwen tugged on Shakespeare's hand, pulling him along too as she followed the Doctor onto the stage.

Looking around at the chaos before them, Gwen saw the form of a spinning red vortex, with black wrath like shadows blowing around in it, the Carrionites. The audience was screaming in fear, and the actors on the stage were backing away nervously.

The Doctor looked around for a moment, before he span around, grabbed Will's arm and pulled him forwards, to the centre of the stage.

'Come on, Will! History needs you!' he cried at the writer.

'But what can I do?' Will asked, alarmed at being suddenly put on the spot like that.

'Reverse it!' the Doctor shouted over the noise.

'How am I supposed to do that?' Will asked bewilderedly.

'The shape of the Globe gives words power, but you're the wordsmith, the one true genius. The only man clever enough to do it!' the Doctor encouraged him as Gwen rushed up to them.

'But what words? I have none ready!' Will protested.

'For god's sake man! You're William Shakespeare!' Gwen reminded him.

'But these Carrionite phrases, the need such precision!' Will countered.

'Believing in yourself Will, like we do! You can do it!' Gwen urged him.

'She's right Will, trust yourself. When you're locked away in your room, the words just come, don't they? Like magic. Words of the right sound, the right shape, the right rhythm — words that last forever! That's what you do, Will! You choose perfect words. Do it. Improvise!' the Doctor encouraged him, and Will took a few steps forwards.

'Close up this den of hateful, dire decay! Decomposition of your witches' plot! You thieve my brains, consider me your toy. My doting Doctor tells me I am not!' the writer yelled over the noise, his words aimed at the vortex itself.

'Foul Carrionite spectres, cease your show! Between the points…' he turned to the Doctor expectantly.

'7-6-1-3-9-0!' the Doctor shouted.

'7-6-1-3-9-0! And banished like a tinker's cuss, I say to thee…' Will floundered. What the hell rhymed with 'cuss'?

He looked at the Doctor.

'Err…' the Doctor stuttered, completely at a loss too.

'Expelliarmus!' Gwen yelled.

'Expelliarmus!' the Doctor confirmed with a grin.

'Expelliarmus!' Will bellowed and the vortex began spinning faster and faster, pulling all the Carrionites back into it, all of them screaming in fear.

'Good old JK!' the Doctor cried happily as suddenly all the Globe's doors burst open, and sheets of paper, the script for Love Labour's Won no less, were all pulled up into the vortex too.

''Love's Labour's Won'. There it goes' Gwen smiled as the cloud began to disperse and fade. A few moments passed, and silence fell. The audience began applauding, and the actors on stage looked at each other before bowing.

Noticed by everyone, the Doctor slipped off the stage and hurried off into the crowd, whilst on the stage, Gwen looked around in amazement.

'They really think that that was all just special effects?' she gaped at their naivety.

'Oh your effect is special indeed Miss Cooper' Will winked at her and Gwen laughed.

'Mr Shakespeare, I thank you and say that your effect is much the same' she giggled and Will laughed. They took each other's hand and bowed as well, enjoying the moment whilst it lasted.

…

Up in one of the high boxes, the Doctor pulled back a curtain and knelt down, seeing a small glowing crystal ball on the seat. He picked it up and held it up to eye level, seeing the three witches trapped within it, all of them scratching at the glass, all of them screaming abuse up at him.

Shaking his head, the Doctor slipped it into his pocket and headed off back down to the streets. He needed to make sure that the Carrionites were never freed again, and to do that, he needed Love's Labour's Won to remain lost, hidden in the depth of time forevermore.

…

As the son rose up over London and the dawn broke, Gwen and Will were sitting at the edge of the stage, Will telling her a joke.

'And I say, a heart for a hart and a dear for a deer' he laughed at his own punch line.

'I don't get it' Gwen frowned in confusion.

'Then give me a joke from Freedonia' Will shook his head fondly.

'OK, Shakespeare walks into a pub and the landlord says "Oi, mate, you're bard"' Gwen giggled. Will roared with laughter.

'It's brilliant! Doesn't make sense, mind you, but never mind that' he said, placing an arm around her waist. Gwen was very conscious of it, but didn't comment, just smiled slightly. After all her bosses flirting, this was barely anything.

'Come here' he whispered.

'Oh no you don't' Gwen laughed, gently unwrapping his arm from her figure and taking a step back. Her days with affairs were long over, she was not going to do that to Rhys ever again and that was a promise.

'Such a tease… but I can tell Gwen Cooper, one day, you will shine as a heroine to every person on this earth' Will smiled at her and Gwen smiled slightly.

At that moment, the Doctor came out from the backstage door, wearing a ruff collar over his suit and carrying an animal skull in his hand.

'Good props store back there! I'm not sure about this though' he said, wiggling the skull about.

'Reminds me of a Sycorax' he commented.

'A what?' Gwen smiled at him.

'Sycorax. Nice word. I'll have that off you as well' Will grinned as well.

'I should be on 10%. How's your head?' the Doctor asked.

'Still aching' Will admitted, giving it a little rub.

'Here, I got you this' the Doctor said, taking the collar off and gently putting it around Will's neck for him, handing the skull to Gwen in the process. She eyes it in repulsion, before dropping it to the floor with a clatter, wiping her hand on her jacket in disgust. The Doctor laughed when he saw her doing that, and Gwen playfully glared at him.

'Neck brace. Wear that for a few days till its better, although you might wanna keep it. It suits you' the Doctor said, turning back to Shakespeare.

'What about Love's Labour's One?' Gwen asked in concern, not wanting a repeat performance.

'Gone. I looked all over, every single copy of 'Love's Labours' Won went up in the sky' the Doctor told them.

'My lost masterpiece' Will sighed, a tad upset.

'Maybe it's for the best though. I think that the world can do without the Carrionites coming to it' Gwen told him, patting his arm lightly.

'She's right, cos there's still power in those words. It should best stay forgotten' the Doctor agreed with her.

'Oh, but I've got new ideas. Perhaps it's time I wrote about fathers and sons. In memory of my boy — my precious Hamnet' Will told them.

'Hamnet?' Gwen's eyebrows flew up to her hairline.

'That's him' Will nodded.

'Ham-NET?' Gwen repeated.

'What's wrong with that?' Will asked defensively.

'Nothing! Just… I've never heard of that name, it just sounds similar to something else' Gwen quickly amended the situation.

'Anyway, time we were off. I've got a nice attic in the TARDIS where this lot…' the Doctor started, bringing the crystal ball out of his pocket where the Carrionites were still scratching at the glass were visible.

'…can scream for all eternity and I've gotta take Gwen back to Freedonia' he carried on.

'You mean travel on through time and space' Will smirked at them, and both their jaws dropped open.

'You what?' the Doctor gaped at him.

'You're from another world like the Carrionites and Gwen is from the future. It's not hard to work out. Although… perhaps she won't be going back as soon as she might think' he smirked vaguely.

'That's... incredible. You are incredible' the Doctor beamed at him whilst Gwen pondered his words. He had a point. With these kind of adventures… maybe it would be a little longer before Gwen was ready to go back home.

'We're alike in many ways, Doctor. Gwen, let me say goodbye to you in a new verse. A sonnet for my Welsh Woman. Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate…' Will began, before he was cut off by a loud cry. One of the actors from the night before came bursting in onto the stage, grinning so widely it looked painful.

'Will! Will! You'll never believe it! She's here! She's turned up!' the first actor cried as another came rushing in.

'We're the talk of the town. She heard about last night! She wants us to perform it again!' the second actor added happily.

'Who does?' Gwen frowned at them.

'Her Majesty! She's here!' the first actor cried in delight. At that moment there was a fanfare played on trumpets and in came striding an eloquent queen, draped in gold and black with a crown sitting proudly on her head.

'Queen Elizabeth I!' the Doctor exclaimed excitedly. Meeting Shakespeare was brilliant, but Queen Elizabeth I? That was amazing! Two famous people in one trip! That was so brilliant!

'Doctor!' the Queen gaped as she spotted him.

'What?' he blinked. He'd never met her before… but maybe one day he would.

'My sworn enemy!' she spat angrily.

'What? What have you done now?' Gwen turned to the Doctor. The Doctor just looked at the queen blankly, really not having the faintest idea.

'Off with his head!' the queen shouted.

'What?!' the Doctor cried, alarmed. Whatever he had done in the future, it surely couldn't have been that bad.

'Never mind that just leg it! See you, Will! And thank you!' Gwen shouted as she tugged on the Doctor's arm and within seconds the two of them were running for their lives again, Will's laughter following them, along with two of the queen's guards.

'Stop in the name of the Queen!' one shouted as the Doctor and Gwen raced through the streets in the direction of the Tardis.

'What the hell have you done to her? What law have you broke now?' Gwen demanded as the blue box came into sight.

'How should I know? I haven't even met her yet. That's time travel for you! Still, can't wait to find out' the Doctor grinned as he unlocked the door. Gwen rushed inside and the Doctor paused, looking back at the approaching guards.

'That's something to look forward to' he smiled, before he caught sight of one of the guards loading his bow with an arrow.

'Oh!' the Doctor cried, ducking inside the Tardis and slamming the door shut.

There was a dull thud, presumable the arrow hitting the wooden door, and the Doctor and Gwen just looked at each other, before they burst out laughing and fell to the floor clutching at their sides.

**...**

**And there we go, a nice long chapter to make up for the long break : ) So, I hope that was worth it, and I really hope you enjoyed it. Now, the actually plots themselves in this story won't alter much from the actual plots of the episode, it's more the dialogue that will be changing around to give a look at the relationship Ten and Gwen share. **

**Also, before I start I'd really like your input on which adventure should happen next, so here are your choices:-**

**Gridlock**

**Planet of the Ood**

**The Beast Below**

**All three of these will appear in this story at some point but I haven't totally decided the order of them yet, so have your say by leaving me a review : ) I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll try to be quicker with the next one : ) Also, I've got a new story called 'Touch of an Angel', so all Martha fans please check that one out : ) See you in the next chapter : )**


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